


Undertale Playlist Shuffle

by NoSleepUntilVacation



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Asgore named this fic, Challenge Response, F/F, F/M, Gen, Implied Sexual Content, Inspired by Fanfiction, Inspired by Music, M/M, Other, Post-Undertale Genocide Route, Post-Undertale Pacifist Route, Pre-Canon, Shuffle Challenge
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-06-28
Updated: 2018-07-13
Packaged: 2019-05-29 21:02:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,266
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15081671
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NoSleepUntilVacation/pseuds/NoSleepUntilVacation
Summary: Based on a challenge I've seen floating around the internet: put your playlist on shuffle, write a ficlet for whatever song comes up, and repeat until you have ten.





	1. Undertale Rocks the '80s, Part 1

**Author's Note:**

> I originally heard of this challenge while browsing the Ace Attorney section; [here](https://archiveofourown.org/works/522757/chapters/924570) is the specific story I got it from. I thought it was too good to pass up, since I love music so much, so here we are. All songs in the first couple of chapters are from my '80s playlist, which currently sits at over 400 songs as of this writing (and was 400 songs exactly at the time of posting chapter 1).

**Song 1: "Who Can It Be Now" - Men at Work**

Alphys looked around, feeling her soul pitter-pattering in her chest. She thought she could hear footsteps, even all the way down here in her True Lab. If they knew she was here, she'd never hear the end of it from the masses. Once they saw the Amalgamates, that would be it. She'd be done for. (Not that part of her didn't feel she deserved it.)

Gasping, she spun around, and she just saw Endogeny, nearly bouncing off the walls and noticeably drooling.

"Oh... you're just hungry? Okay."

She went off to get it some food.

* * *

 

**Song 2: "The Future's So Bright, I Gotta Wear Shades" - Timbuk3**

Sans couldn't help but smirk. It was surprisingly easy to get a job related to incredibly complex topics such as quantum physics. Even as he studied these subjects and helped to discover what there was to learn, his mind couldn't help but try to twist itself around these concepts and what they would mean to him. Maybe the world would end up going to hell later if these concepts were misapplied; it wasn't like Sans cared that much. His life already felt like hell sometimes, even as everyone he loved felt good in their lives.

* * *

 

**Song 3: "Do You Really Want to Hurt Me" - Culture Club**

Mettaton's wheel nearly threatened to create a rut in the floor as he paced and paced. Dr. Alphys was sure taking a long time making his final body. Of course, he knew in his heart that genius couldn't be rushed; that was a lesson he lived by. And yet... was there something bigger going on? What was taking so long? Was it a situation where, if she altered one flaw, a bunch of bigger flaws would open up? If so, he could somewhat understand (even if he sincerely hoped that wasn't it; then, it'd just take even longer to finish his body). Sincerely, though, he'd seen the blueprints; denying him that form would just be teasing, crueler than the kind he did on a regular basis.

* * *

 

**Song 4: "We are the World" - USA for Africa**

Frisk looked up into the sky. They didn't know what the future held for humans and monsters, but they knew enough history to know that relations between minority groups and the majority didn't always start off on the right foot. But they were determined; if they could win over the entirety of monsterkind, from the royalty to the celebrities, winning over other humans couldn't be that hard.

Each and every one of their friends would be there to stand by them if things went wrong; whether defending them with words or acting as bodyguards, they would all rather look foolish in front of the humans instead of allowing Frisk to be hurt. Maybe someday, every person would have an entire group of friends to stand up for them; Frisk dreamed of the day when no one had to live in fear of anything.

* * *

 

**Song 5: "In the Air Tonight" - Phil Collins**

Frisk found themselves shrouded in darkness; the only other thing that existed in the world was another child, who looked very much like them. The other child folded their arms.

"Don't try to blame _me_ for all of this," they said. "In the end, it was your choice to take all those lives. What happened to staying determined, huh? You took the easy way out; you even killed people who tried to spare your life. Remember Papyrus?"

Frisk couldn't stop trembling; this child was right.

"And now you think you can just go back as if none of this ever happened. Well, too bad. It's time for you to learn the consequences of your actions!"

The child produced a knife and lunged at Frisk; Frisk had dodged several attacks before, but just like Sans, they couldn't dodge forever. And here, their luck ran out.

* * *

 

**Song 6: "The Boys of Summer" - Don Henley**

Many years had passed since that day in Waterfall, when Frisk had saved Kid's life. Now, Kid was a kid in name only. It was the last day of summer, and as they walked down the roads, they couldn't help but notice some of the shops they would go to.

_Frisk loved some of these places. Heh... I still remember when they brought the house down on their first karaoke night._

Of course, Frisk had ambassador duties, which meant that every now and then, they couldn't stay in town. The end of this summer was the most recent of such occasions. Kid sighed; such were the problems of being adults.

Maybe one of these days, when Frisk came back, they could join Kid in revisiting the past. Something within them never completely grew up; they hoped that something never would grow up.

* * *

 

**Song 7: "Born in the USA" - Bruce Springsteen**

Gerson looked at his old war equipment on the shelf. If he didn't take care of it so much, it probably wouldn't have lasted this long. He sadly sighed; the humans had nearly massacred all of monsterkind. It said something that he was considered a war hero just for surviving the ordeal. Most of the others who did survive were long-gone by now.

Even worse is that the humans had them in something of a catch-22. The only way the monsters could leave was if they killed seven humans and took their souls. But then, once they got to the surface, the humans would be out for their dust because they'd killed seven of their kind just to get to the surface.

Another sigh. Sometimes the world worked in completely unfair ways.

* * *

 

**Song 8: "Rock Me Amadeus" - Falco**

Undyne's fingers gleefully pounded out different melodies on the piano. A huge grin was on her face; if she was going to learn an instrument, she was going to go all-out. Because if she didn't give it her all, she might as well have been giving it nothing.

Asgore stood off to the side, looking slightly bewildered. He hadn't even known a piano could be that loud. Then again, she at least seemed to be picking up the concepts quite well. And she was putting herself into what she played; that was just as important.

* * *

 

**Song 9: "Only the Lonely" - The Motels**

Toriel woke up from her most recent dream, frowning. It was rather fuzzy to her at this point, but what she remembered of it involved Asgore; she'd forgotten that she was supposed to be angry at him. She couldn't hold back an exasperated sigh. The more rational parts of her wanted nothing more to do with him; he'd refused to keep a cool head when it mattered most. A grieving father should know better than anyone else how it feels to lose someone close!

And yet... why did part of her heart yearn for him again?

* * *

 

**Song 10: "Waiting for a Girl Like You" - Foreigner**

Alphys initially thought Asgore would be the person for her; she tried to tell herself this in spite of how the rest of her knew that he still wasn't over his ex-wife. But he seemed to understand her better than anyone else, so who else was there?

And then Undyne charged into her life as if to yell "Me, punk!"

Something about Undyne... Alphys didn't know if it was her enthusiasm, her willingness to go full-tilt into life, or something else. But when she was around her, things just felt like they were going to be okay. Even when Undyne learned about Alphys' past, she didn't even reject her, but instead reached out to help her.

Alphys couldn't believe someone thought she deserved love. And yet, somehow, Undyne made her believe.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Forgive me for some of the writings being disjointed and/or abrupt; I tried to go with the rule that "you can only type it for as long as the song is going", and even then, I flouted this rule every now and then when it would have been too abrupt. Also, I tried to write them as I listened to the actual songs, something I don't usually do because I'd get distracted.
> 
> But this was an experiment, and we shall see if it went well. Maybe I'll make a second chapter (or more).


	2. Undertale Rocks the '80s, Part 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> More fun in the '80s. Now with at least 35% more Papyton, Alphyne, Torigore, and (possible) Chara/Kid than the leading brand.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If I end up rolling a song that I already wrote about, I'll wait for the next one unless I can really think of something else I could write on that subject. It didn't happen this time, but putting it here just in case.

**Song 1: "Strut" - Sheena Easton**

As she walked through the anime convention, Alphys looked around nervously. There were many very attractive cosplayers around the building, with their very shapely bodies. Of course, she had nothing against them, but sometimes she'd look in the mirror, see her chubby form, and wonder if she had the right to be in the same ranks as them.

She glanced over at Undyne, who didn't have a care in the world as she paraded about in her own costume. Undyne was rather thin, with more muscles than curves, and yet she didn't seem to have problems with her own body.

Alphys thought for a moment; if Undyne could do it, maybe she could do it too.

* * *

 

**Song 2: "Sister Christian" - Night Ranger**

"And then Mettaton told me he loved me! Can you believe it, Sans?!"

While Sans listened to Papyrus' stories of the evening he'd just spent with Mettaton, he had his own thoughts about the way life was going. His little brother was really starting to grow up at this point; in the past, Sans would often want to keep him protected from all the bad things in life. But he eventually realized the truth: Papyrus needed support, not sheltering. Something deep within his heart tried to tell him "but what if he doesn't need you anymore?" The rest of him argued back that, since they were brothers, Papyrus would always need him in some way or another; he was just becoming more self-sufficient.

Sans gave a bittersweet smile. Things would probably be very different from this point on, but that's why people make new memories.

* * *

 

**Song 3: "Heart and Soul" - T'Pau**

Summoning the slight courage she had, Shyren sang along with Frisk's humming. When she saw that Frisk wasn't reacting with disgust, but further encouragement, she let her voice fly free some more. Singing was always easier with a partner, after all.

Before she knew it, a whole crowd of monsters had gathered to cheer on the impromptu concert. A short skeleton was selling toilet paper tickets, and some monsters were throwing socks around as they all sang along. Shyren thought about her future; she would still need more time to ponder live touring, since just this one concert was already proving to be draining, but she figured she had nothing to lose if she made a solo record.

And when she saw Frisk dodge the musical-note-shaped bullets from her mouth, she had an idea of what her first song should be called.

* * *

 

**Song 4: "The Reflex" - Duran Duran**

Bright lights in many different colors rotated around the room as a loud, upbeat song nearly rattled the foundations. Mettaton moved with all of his natural grace, watching Alphys as she clumsily tried to copy him.

"Don't forget to put your hips into it, darling!"

With a nervous laugh, Alphys tried to put some more hip movements into her dance moves, trying not to feel dirty. She tried to focus on what her hands were doing at the same time.

Learning to dance was harder than she'd thought, especially since she and Mettaton had such different body types. But if he could learn to dance despite not even having legs until recently, she certainly could.

* * *

 

**Song 5: "(Keep Feeling) Fascination" - The Human League**

"So what are the base pairs in a DNA double-helix?"

"Uhhh..."

"Come on, Kid, work with me here!"

Chara took another bite of their chocolate bar as they looked over Kid's shoulder at the textbook they were studying. They had the feeling that, unlike their mom, they probably weren't teacher material. If working with just one kid - whom they liked, no less - was enough to make them lose their patience, working with a ton of kids who most likely didn't want to learn would drive them up the wall (especially since Chara tended to learn things more quickly than others). Toriel certainly had the patience of a saint.

Finally, Kid looked up. "Adenine and... guanine?"

"Nope. Adenine goes with thymine, and guanine with cytosine." Chara grabbed their soda bottle and took a sip. "Maybe we could think of a mnemonic device or something to help you remember. Adenine-thymine is AT, so 'at the...'"

Kid looked back down at their sock-clad feet, crossing their ankles. "This is kinda stupid, but... 'at the Guacamole Club'?"

Chara blinked. "Okay... whatever works. 'Guacamole Club', though? What made you come up with that?"

"Cause I'm hungry."

And so the conversation turned from studying for the science test to eating junk food and watching cartoons that were made for audiences older than them.

* * *

 

**Song 6: "Rebel Yell" - Billy Idol**

Undyne woke up in a daze, running her fingers through her messed-up hair. Last night was pretty hectic and chaotic, as well as pretty loud. She had no idea Alphys was capable of doing those sorts of things; then again, though, it was always the ones you'd least suspect.

God, she loved Alphys. They'd always helped each other through bad times, and Undyne was not about to change that anytime soon. She'd do anything to help Alphys see the brighter side of life, and she knew Alphys would cheer her up when she needed it. And if anyone tried to get between them, there'd be hell to pay, for sure.

* * *

 

**Song 7: "Da Da Da" - Trio**

Toriel let out an exasperated sigh and rolled her eyes as she thought about the past. While she'd certainly loved Asgore back then, things were different now. The Asgore of those days wasn't a killer who had kept his people trapped underground just to give them false hope.

_But don't you ever wonder if he feels guilty?_

While that question gnawed at her thoughts, she tried to shake it off. If he felt guilty, he wouldn't have dishonored the memory of their children by declaring that he'd start another war with humanity! Asriel wouldn't have wanted that, and despite Chara hating humanity for their own personal reasons, they too were a human!

Living here in the Ruins wasn't the exact kind of life she'd hoped for, but anything to avoid having to hear monsterkind cheer on that despicable decree.

* * *

 

**Song 8: "19" - Paul Hardcastle**

Frisk lay in their bed, thinking about everything they'd been through over what was technically one day, but felt like several. They'd had to talk down the entire Royal Guard and the royalty, dealt with a spider queen and her pet, survived a celebrity's deadly games, coped with the fact that they were only in those games because someone else wanted to be a hero, lived through both of the fallen prince's nightmares... an adult would probably buckle under all that pressure. Frisk was only ten.

"I mean, I'm not angry at any of them anymore," they said to their mom. "But when I think about how close I came to losing my life..."

Frisk's mom gave a thoughtful nod; she certainly had been horrified when she'd discovered what the monsters had tried to do to her child, but after she talked to them and realized that they honestly regretted what they did, she decided to give them the benefit of the doubt for now. "I think for now, we should all just take a breather. Maybe you could write your feelings down in a journal? We won't look unless you want to show us."

"Maybe." Frisk could only hope and pray that they wouldn't be stricken with nightmares about the past.

* * *

 

**Song 9: "Need You Tonight" - INXS**

Mettaton watched the old videos of himself and his friends playing games together. Although he didn't always get along well with Undyne, something about Undyne's best friend, Papyrus, was really piquing his interest. Was it his kindness? Or was it his enthusiasm? Maybe it was just that Papyrus was a fan of his? It could just be that he and Papyrus acted similar in a number of ways.

Either way, Mettaton was getting _really_ curious about this spaghetti-slinging skeleton. At his earliest convenience, he thought, he'd have to further get to know him.

* * *

 

**Song 10: "Like a Prayer" - Madonna**

As Toriel came down from the emotional and physical high that came with being physically and mentally connected to Asgore, she closed her eyes and deeply focused. Unlike humans, who had to wait a couple of months, several species of monsters could know for sure that they were pregnant as soon as a few minutes after conception. Boss Monsters, whose lifespans were tied to those of their children (if they had any), were among those species. As she meditated, she could feel the slightest hints of magical signatures shifting.

Asgore, coming down from his own high, looked over at her as if to silently ask if it worked. He too felt a miniscule, barely-noticeable feeling coming over him, but initially wasn't sure if it was what he thought it was or if it was just in his head.

But when Toriel looked at him with a tearful smile and a nod, he knew.

They spent the next several minutes in each other's arms, excitedly discussing the future, until they both fell asleep, dreaming of the new life growing in Toriel's body, and all the potential within.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This time around, I gave myself as much time as I needed to write the bits and pieces. It's good because, with some of them, the song was a good part of the way through before I could come up with something to write about.


	3. Undertale Rocks the '80s, Part 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Weekends are for '80s music, in my opinion. Did you know I really love '80s music?!
> 
> Stay tuned for Mettaton Mania! Also, the obligatori segment where there's Torigore angsting. And don't miss my interpretations of the human souls!

**Song 1: "Every Little Thing She Does is Magic" - The Police**

As Papyrus stared at the screen, he found himself utterly captivated. The way Mettaton made spaghetti was certainly different from the way Undyne was teaching him, but nevertheless, Papyrus wanted to keep watching. Mettaton could be doing nothing but reading an end user license agreement, and Papyrus would still watch (or at least listen) with rapt attention.

Sometimes he would let his mind go to faraway places; what would happen if he just so happened to catch Mettaton wandering around Snowdin one day? He would do his best to be completely gracious to this esteemed guest to Snowdin. Maybe, just maybe, Mettaton would like him enough to want to keep in touch with him, and they could be cool friends!

...Hey, a skeleton can dream, can't he?

* * *

 

**Song 2: "Lonely Ol' Night" - John Mellencamp**

Ted adjusted his cowboy hat as he glanced over at Frisk, who'd joined him beneath the tree. "You lonely, too?"

"Mm-hmm," Frisk said as they nodded. "It feels like everyone is busy tonight except me... and you, I guess. Even Sans is busy!"

If Ted hadn't remembered that there was a lollipop in his mouth, he would have just let his jaw drop. "Sans is busy? You serious, partner?"

"Yep. Something about his machine suddenly acting up. The readings are off the scales, he says."

With a shrug, Ted leaned back against the trunk. "I don't know nothing about all those doohickeys he plays with, so I couldn't tell ya. Wanna just stare at the stars with me? Not like we've got anything better to do."

Frisk couldn't argue with that.

* * *

 

**Song 3: "True" - Spandau Ballet**

For the first time in several months, Mettaton felt well and truly alone. He briefly held up a framed photograph of the human actress he'd recently broken up with before sighing and letting that arm hang off the mattress.

It wasn't anyone's fault; he and this actress had been nothing but kind to each other. They were truly in love, but somewhere along the line, they'd realized that their goals in life didn't match well at all. She wanted to start a big family someday, while he was perfectly fine with serving as an uncle figure, and wasn't even sure if he wanted to be a dad. And that was just one of the incongruencies.

He leaned back and closed his eyes. Why did love have to slip from his hands so easily? It was easy for him to get people, but keeping them was a whole different situation.

As he listened to the bittersweet love songs on the radio, his mind tried to fill in the void she left. Maybe someday he'd find someone who'd keep his heart; right now, though, it was too soon.

* * *

 

**Song 4: "Ghostbusters" - Ray Parker Jr.**

Frisk walked around the house, keeping their ear out for the tell-tale whirring of Mettaton's soul casing. They'd already found some of their other friends; however, for someone who very often made sure everyone knew he was in the room, Mettaton was surprisingly good at hiding.

Suddenly, they got a very clever idea. They smirked, before taking a deep breath and letting their voice ring out.

" _Is this the real life? Is this just fantasy?_ "

In that instant, Mettaton's voice came from the closet: " _Caught in a landslide, no escape from reality...!_ "

However, as Frisk opened the door, Mettaton's voice suddenly faltered as his face fell. Words failed him for a few seconds, but he finally spoke. "You, my darling, are probably the sneakiest child I know."

Frisk just giggled.

* * *

 

**Song 5: "Video Killed the Radio Star" - The Buggles**

"These are considered some of the greatest music videos of all time." The pink ghost leaned up from his place on the floor. "Wouldn't it be wonderful if we could make our own? People would come from every corner of the Underground in order to hear our song..."

"Oh... that would certainly be fun..." Napstablook thought about it for a while. They were a bit afraid of the spotlight, but their cousin was the exact opposite. He often spoke of being in the spotlight someday, being the idol everyone craved.

As another video came on, the cousins watched the screen with rapt attention. Napstablook thought they saw the wheels in their cousin's mind turning, but said nothing.

* * *

 

**Song 6: "Find Another Fool" - Quarterflash**

As Toriel stormed out of New Home for what would be the last time for decades, steam was blowing out of her ears. The entire Underground would probably reject her for this, but she didn't care. If it was a choice between being rejected and having to watch her husband murder children so everyone on the surface could die, she would gladly take being rejected. She was a queen with principles, and she was not about to flout them just because... because...

As tears fell from her eyes and streamed down her face, she screamed in frustration. Who was this demon, and what had he done to her Gorey?

* * *

 

**Song 7: "Baby Don't Forget My Number" - Milli Vanilli**

At first, Iris was gleefully dancing along with everyone else, pulling off her ballet moves. However, once she recognized the song, she immediately headed off to go get some punch, grimacing.

Biff, who'd been dancing around and boisterously singing along, noticed this, and headed over to her. He got his own cup of punch in his gloved hand. "What's up, Iris?"

Iris rolled her eyes. "You know those guys are frauds, right? They just lip-synced to other performers."

"Yeah, I think everyone knows that by now." Biff sipped his punch. "But that doesn't mean we can't enjoy the music for what it is, right? There were other guys singing on it, and I don't wanna trash them just because there was a scandal. The others are enjoying it, see?"

Iris looked out on the dance floor, where Frisk and Kid, among others, were dancing without a care in the world. While she still had enough reservations to avoid dancing to the song for as long as it continued playing, she thought that Biff at least had a bit of a point.

* * *

 

**Song 8: "Stand" - R.E.M.**

"Can someone puh- _lease_ tell me how I ended up stranded in a car with a freaking pretty boy?!"

Mettaton rolled his eyes. "I told you, Undyne. Alphys and Papyrus are heading out to get help because we don't have a spare car battery."

"Why doesn't Papyrus have a spare, again? Given that he loves his car so much..." Undyne slammed some water from her bottle.

"Those things could leak battery acid, darling. And somehow it's doubtful that Papyrus wants that in his car."

Undyne gripped the back seat, muttering under her breath, "Well, he lets _you_ in the car all the time..."

"I heard that." Mettaton leaned back. "And besides, my battery doesn't leak. Alphys made sure of it when she made my body."

With a sigh, Undyne put her water bottle back in its cup holder. "This is gonna be a long afternoon."

* * *

 

**Song 9: "Nasty" - Janet Jackson**

"Like, oh my god, Catty. Do you see that?"

"I know, Bratty! Like, oh my god!"

Burgerpants was walking around, almost looking like he wanted to ask the girls something.

Bratty sighed. "What a creepo."

"A total creepo." Catty folded her arms. You give a guy like him one bit of attention, and he suddenly thinks he has the right to do anything!

Although...

Suddenly, Catty leaned over. "If I ask him, you think he'll get me a Glamburger?"

"After what happened last time? Like, no way!" It wasn't like they could just buy them, either; they needed customers first!

Catty shrugged. Well, she at least, like, tried!

* * *

 

**Song 10: "Bette Davis Eyes" - Kim Carnes**

Mettaton watched the old movie that had ended up underground as if it were the most important thing right now (and it was, since he said it was). He'd heard that the leading actress in this was considered one of the greatest of all time; if he kept up his hot streak, maybe he too would rocket to the high spots in those lists. Especially if he finally made it to the surface and got to perform for humans.

He dreamed of appearing on the big screen several times, each time selling out the box office, and his heart was thrilled. After all, he did have a talent, and it would be a waste to not to put it to proper use.

Above all, he thought, his fellow monsters shouldn't ask for the moon quite yet. They have a star!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For those who are wondering about the unfamiliar names: Ted is my version of the Justice human soul, Biff is Bravery, and Iris is Integrity.
> 
> Also, if you know which movie Mettaton is watching in the last bit, you win an internet cookie.
> 
> (And yeah, I know "Video Killed the Radio Star" is technically from the very late '70s, but gimme a break; it was the first video played on MTV, so it's hard not to associate it with the '80s.)

**Author's Note:**

> If this experiment keeps going well, I might make more chapters.


End file.
